Karma is perhaps one of the most controversial and mystic concepts that have fascinated people worldwide. Basically, the term karma defines action or doing, thus in other words, what you think, say and do is actually, karma. The theory of Karma is a fundamental doctrine in Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism. This doctrine provides a coherent model that focuses on the functioning of the world and its beings, or more exactly the law of moral causation. However, Buddhism karma is associated particularly with the actions that spring from the intentions of beings. Moreover, one of the most ancient and powerful structures of the Buddhist scripture indicates: “I declare, O Bhikkhus, that volition is Karma. Having willed one acts by body, speech, and thought.” (Anguttara Nikaya). Nevertheless, actions that can be defines as unintentional, involuntary, or unconscious, do not constitute Karma, due to the fact that volition, the essential factor in determining Karma, is absent.
Karma in Buddhism hosts the entire circle of cause and effect. Therefore, if at the basis of your actions was an evil, negative seed, the fruit will be as poisoning and destructive, while, on the contrary, if the seed was positive the fruit of your actions will be nourishing, gratifying. A good example in this case is the circle of human relationships. The first relationship most people experience is the child-parent relation. We are conceived by a fusion of sperm and ovum that forms ultimately, the nucleus of the being, which means that Karma represents the indispensable conceptive cause of beings. The presence of Karma can be perceived even in the common words a mother says to her child, “You have to be good so that you can be happy and have our love. However, if you are bad, you will be unhappy all the time, we will turn our love from you.” Thus, as long as the child respects the word and desires of his parents, he will benefit by their support, but the second he will turn against their will, he will be banished. The second relationship that marks the human life is the friendship one that functions on the same principle. As long as treat your friends with kindness, honesty and respect, you will receive the same treatment. Once you take advantage of your friends, you will receive the consequences of your approach.
Even in the third relationship, marriage or love, karma has an important role. When you choose to show love, commitment and respect to your partner, you will harvest what you have worked. In return, when you choose the other approach and you cheat or mistreat your partner, you actually cheat yourself, thus you will gain nothing more than cheating and husk. In addition, these values can be adopted later on by your children and grandchildren. Long story short, Karma represents the powerful law of cause and effect